Our first ever live episode! Last June, we traveled to Ocracoke island for the annual Ocrafolk festival. This a celebration of island traditions features music, crafting, storytelling, arts and of course food. We were joined by Deborah Wells, Eduardo Chavez and Lauren Strohl, who shared what it’s like to live and cook in this seabound village.

How do you change someone’s relationship to food? A whole lot of goat cheese doesn’t hurt. Steve Tate, along with wife, Lee, and sister (and original “Goat Lady”) Ginnie, started Goat Lady Dairy 15 years ago with a 200 year old barn and a dream. Since that time, their hand crafted cheese has made its way into stores and on tables around the region. Listen in as Steve shares about farm life, running a family business and teaching the world—one round of cheese at a time.

How do you go from studying public health in college to head chef at a New Orleans based restaurant? Ask Mary Aaroe. Her journey from sometime cook to communicator in chief at 1000 Figs took a few years, but she made it happen. Listen in for insights into what it's like to be in a professional kitchen, the difference between making things for yourself and for customers and how you navigate the food world when your back yard is New Orleans.

Irene Godinez has learned one big lesson as a community organizer: nothing builds relationships quite like food. She should know, she's worked at organizations that focus on women's health, immigration, civil rights and seen the way sharing your culture but sharing a meal can elevate the sometimes long journey to fight for what's right. Listen in for stories of community building, flavors that cross boarders and the way life has changed thanks to her year-old daughter.

Being the member of an up and coming bluegrass band has its perks...and its consistent stream of tacos and coffee. Libby Rodenbough, fiddler and singer in Mipso, talks growing up in the piedmont of North Carolina, making meal plans by committee, and the simple pleasure of a fresh cooked plate of greens.

Growing up in a Jewish family in Arkansas meant that from a young age, our guest Marcie Cohen Ferris knew that food meant something. It marked identity, ritual, leisure, class. As a professor of American Studies at UNC Chapel Hill, Ferris brings all the joy and insight of food studies to her students. On this episode, she shares that love and a few stories of home with us.

It's all in the family this episode, as Amy interviews her beloved grandmother, Faye Payne Alexander, about making buttermints, home ec, and the surprising story of how her great grandparents fell in love.

It's been over 20 years since writer Greg Phillips followed a girl to America. His definitions of home have changed a few times since then, but keeping a box of Weetabix nearby keeps this Brit in good spirits regardless.

For journalist Victoria Bouloubasis, her work is about capturing the intersection of food, immigration and labor. In this episode, she shares the family stories and personal adventures that inspire that quest and fuel her love of olive oil.

With parents in the Diplomatic service, Katy Clune grew up traveling the world. Now, she works in cultural communications, as a writer and designer. Listen in for memories of foreign birthdays, startlingly fresh seafood, and a featured performance from Percy the Cat.